Brockport to address rooming home situation

Eighteen rooming/boarding houses are under the microscope as part of two new codes Village of Brockport officials are studying. There are housing situations within the village in which college students are rooming in attics or basements that have been converted to sleeping areas and homes in which students utilize communal kitchen and bathroom space.

Mayor Josephine Matela said the issue of too many students being packed into spaces that exceed living space capacity has been one she has been concerned with for several years.

"This is not a new issue," she said. "But we've had a committee looking into the codes for the past six to eight months."

A public hearing on the proposed amendments to Chapter 58 of the Village of Brockport Code that relate to "elimination by amortization of boarding houses and rooming houses (and any related similar uses, by other names or designations)," and changes to "eliminate by amortization of occupancy by more than three unrelated persons in residential dwelling units in properties acquired prior to April 17, 1995" will be the topics of discussion at an April 18 public hearing which is scheduled for 7 p.m.

If the new codes were approved, landlords would be forced to stop renting boarding-style rooms and put a stop to landlords renting apartments to more than three unrelated people to live in one apartment. It is unknown by Brockport officials as to how many apartments are being rented to three or more unrelated individuals.

"The purpose of the hearing, which is just the first step in the process," Matela said, "is to listen to ideas from the public on how to address these safety issues."

Trustee Mort Wexler said the law was intended to cut down the number of people who are in an apartment - for obvious safety reasons - and he has no problem with that. What he does have an issue with, however, is the legality of the proposal. "Without a doubt, if the village tries to enforce this type of code, it would be repealed."

Wexler said one of his big concerns also was that the new codes will be tied to a case which has been in litigation since 1997 and which has cost village taxpayers more than $200,000 in legal fees.

"If I've owned a house for 'x' number of years and have continually received my Certificate of Occupancy over those years, how can the village come in now and tell a landlord that they have a certain number of years in which to convert that rooming house into an apartment?" Wexler asked.

Wexler said he's not convinced that the proposed changes are in the best interests of the village. "I'll sit and listen but I have to be convinced that this will benefit the village," he said. "I have a tremendous amount of doubt that it will benefit Brockport."

Wexler said the village could be "going down a long road of legal fees" if the proposed codes pass.

Matela said the village's deputy attorney, Frank Aloi, has been working on updating the village codes and that what the village is trying to do is nothing that hasn't been done in other communities.

"We aren't reinventing the wheel. We aren't coming up with new ideas," she said. "These issues were brought to us by our attorney and we are looking at ways to solve some of the problems we have been having with rooming houses and the safety issues that surround them."

Matela said the village recognizes the importance of the college students to the area but that the safety of these students and their living conditions should be paramount.

"We want to work with the landlords and the community to come up with the best possible solution," she said. "That's why we are having the public hearing - to gather comments and ideas."

Brockport plays host to more than 7,000 college students annually and many of those students live in off-campus housing. SUNY Brockport is planning construction of a new 400-unit dormitory expansion.

The public hearing will be held at the village hall as part of the regular board meeting.